|
|
|
|
||
|
Andover Neighbors: Builders held toxin report Eagle Tribune 11/1/00 For now; the town will rely on the state to tell it if Powder Mill Square is safe to build on. By Shawn Regan Eagle-Tribune Writer ANDOVER- Town officials and neighbors of the proposed Powder Mill Square complex claim developers withheld an environmental report that reveals low-level chemicals on the property during reviews by the Planning Board and the Conservation Commission. Both boards approved the project recently after nearly yearlong hearings. Neighbors have appealed the Planning Board's decision to Essex Superior Court and the Conservation Commission's ruling to the state Executive Office of Environmental Affairs. Northpoint Realty Development Corp. plans to build 72 apartments and a 65,OOO-square-foot medical office at the old mill property, wedged between North Main Street, Stevens Street and the Shawsheen River. Several historic homes on North Main Street will be demolished to make way for the development. Health Director Everett F. Penney Jr. said he attempted to contact Northpoint's attorney, Robert W. Lavoie, weekly for the last four months asking for the results of ongoing environmental tests. Simmons Environmental Services of Salisbury, Northpoint's environmental consultant, found traces of arsenic along with an industrial solvent on the five-acre site. Simmons' report is dated June and includes some tests completed in January. The report was submitted to the town last week. "We received the information last week, four months affer we asked for it," Mr. Penney said. "It's troubling they had it all along." Mr. Lavoie said the level of contamination is so slight, it would not trigger a cleanup by the state Department of Environmental Protection. He said the company needed to clarify certain parts of the report before releasing it. "The substance found has a 1- part-per-billion reporting requirement," Mr. Lavoie said. "We are at 8, so it will be reported. But it isn't even close to an amount that would cause the state to order an (Environmental Impact Report). It's an amount you would expect to find on any industrial site." At a visit to the property last week, several people urged selectmen to have the town conduct its own investigation of the site, or at least hire a consultant to review Simmons' findings. Barbara E. Hodgman, of 256 N. Main St., said the people in the neighborhood feel like they've been "blindsided" by the project. "We don't feel like they've told the neighbors at all what's going on or given the data timely or willingly," she said. "We'd like the town to do its own study because we don't have confidence in (the developers)." Duawayne S. Erickson, who lives along the river at 226 N. Main St., said many children play in the area and asked "what about the safety of the kids?" Mr. Lavoie said the chemicals found in the soil are not from the site, but rather from a nearby gas station at 200 N. Main St. "Why are you mad at us and not mad at the Sunoco station or the town for not telling you about the chemicals which were here long before us?" he asked angry neighbors during the Oct.26 site visit. "We just happened to find (the chemicals)." Stephen Colyer, the town's planning director, said the Planning Board would not have denied the project if it had seen Simmons' report during its review. "At the most, the board may have added a condition to deal with the chemicals," he said. Conservation Commissioner James A. Greer said he could not speak for the commission, but that chemicals in the soil are usually the purview of the state Department of Environmental Protection. Mr. Penney said he believes the property needs further study before the project goes forward. He said the town found chemicals on other parcels near the property and on the other side of the river. "It's cavalier and premature for the developers to say the state will not call for a full environmental analysis of the project," he said. Matthew A. Caffrey, an attorney representmg Peter M. and Donna J. Hadley, 8 Joyce Terrace, who are suing the Planning Board for approving the project, said the town should hire a consultant to review Simmons' data. "Simmons has plainly said, based on what they found, there needs to be more testing," he said. Northpoint's Louis P. Minicucci Jr. called Simmons' report a "red herring." "We certainly are going to do whatever is required by the state, but the contamination levels are actually surprisingly low for an industrial site," he said. "Some of them are naturally occurring." Selectmen appear inclined to wait and see what the state thinks about Simmons' report before deciding what to do. The state will receive the report this week, Mr.Lavoie said. "If we do nothing, we will be relying on DEP to tell us it's a safe site," Selectman John P. Hess said.
|
|
|
| [Home] [Calendar] [SRWA/SWEAT] [Powder Mill Sq.] [Beavers] [Gallery 2000] [News & Info] [Water Quality] [Watershed] |
